Finally got to try out Nuage. OMG!!!

3 weeks ago, I found out that my local pro music shop had Nuage available to try out. It’s taken all of that time to finally free up my schedule and go lay my hands on it. What an experience! Actually touching the physical version of the N6 console I’ve been looking at for all of this time was like meeting a girl you fell in love with online and finally got to actually go out! :mrgreen: I WANT IT!!

I thought that it would ONLY work for Nuendo and I didn’t want to be backed into a “WK id” corner. But when I learned that you could run 3 DAWs at once (the other 2 via HUI protocol), I was hooked. It looks like a desk, it feels like a desk and It works like a desk (or at least like an “ICON desk”), with DSP chips removing the latency for live recording!

Now, I want to sell all of my other gear to get one! I can’t remember the last time I actually got excited about a piece of gear! The market is down, budgets are suicidally low and there’s absolutely no sane justification that I can “bring to congress (translation: wife)” that would get “that bill to pass!”

Nevetheless (start playing “Climb Every Mountain” in the background) my brothers, I will be looking for every opportunity to “swing for the fences” on this one! Well done Steinberg/Yamaha! :sunglasses:

Congratulation for your decision. I can feel with you. For an non-pro like me, it’s too expensive … unfortunately. I’ll continue torture my mouse :mrgreen:

Oh, it IS absolutely too expensive! You’re basically “re-inventing the wheel.” You’ve got to purchase the card for the computer, the interface modules, the fader pack(s), monitors to replace the meter bridge, a master module, and then you’ve got to purchase mic pres and a rack for them! As compared to a desk, say a Yamaha 02R-96, where all you’d have to buy is the MADI cards for the desk and the computer and you’re done, this purchase could only be described as lust! Nobody NEEDS a Ferrari! But if there were anyway possible to make that purchase… :mrgreen:

I’ll be slogging away on my DA-7/Euphonix MC Control rigg for some time to come. Now, just knowing first hand that such a system exists leaves you flat out distracted. I’m a lot calmer now, the morning after. But what a “thrill ride!”

Keyplayer,

I have to disagree with you referring to “lust” and “Ferrari”.
As a person who is been working on Nuage for a year, I can assure you that Nuage is not some kind of groovy “toy” to play with. It is a very usefull, all purpose, clever, intiutive, flexible extention to Nuendo 6 and a controller for any other DAW. Here’s my take on describing Nuage: "It’s been like switching from flying an aircraft with a mouse and keyboard to flying it from within a real cokpit ”

(Edit: Damn, apparently the word co*kpit is autmatically changed into Rock) - Funny

And … it’s worth every penny.

Fredo

One comment on the DSP though. There is no DSP in Nuage, and the Hardware neither offers “real” DSP.
The No-Latency monitoring is the same Direct Monitoring you’ll find in most of the ASIO gear.

And I don’t know ,if it’s clear to you that you can use any Hardware you like.
We were on MADI, and we haven’t switched. We left everthing as it was.
That allows us to hook up any kind of Front End hardware we like.
Unless you need the hardware (which is of great quality), there is no real need to purchase them.

Then I was misinformed by the salesman. He said that the DSP was taking the load off of the PC during live recording, which accounted for the ICON type lack of latency. That’s good to know about being able to use MADI. Absolutely any place where I might save a buck makes it that much more possible to get one. Thanks for the info. :sunglasses:

Ditto here, still using my RME hardware with Nuage. The salesman needs an education!

As both of you have desks in your website photos, I assume that’s how you deal with the latency issue and you confine your controllers to mixing and editing duties?

Hi,

Our front end desk (Soundcraft Saffire) has been replaced by Nuage.
We have a set of preamps, which are going into AD converters (we have a few different brands), which are connected to a (MADI) RME ADI-648, which is connected to the RME MADI card in our computer.
That’s our complete front end.
Monitoring is done through Nuendo, using Direct Monitoring.
This works flawless; just a few weeks ago, I recorded a band with at some point around 20+ channels in recording.
The headphone mix was done in Nuendo at no Latency.
No worries.

Fredo

As both of you have desks in your website photos, I assume that’s how you deal with the latency issue and you confine your controllers to mixing and editing duties?

In two of our rooms we use a Yamaha O1V96 to handle monitoring. I am in the process of setting up monitoring thru Nuendo in the other rooms and hope to ultimately shift all over. john.

Here’s how our system looks like in the middle of a job.


And our front end


Cheers
Fredo

It’s really interesting that absolutely nobody I know can actually USE the QWERTY keyboard slot that Yamaha provided. I wonder who was in charge of that measurement.

In any case, thanks a lot for the photos and the info. I was especially interested in your speaker placement. That’s been a big concern for me. How tall are the HP monitors? The meter bridge on my desk is much lower and I’ve got my stereo and 5.1 array right at the level of my head seated at the console. I’ve been trying to figure out how I would place those monitors with just a fader pack and single HP monitor. I know I won’t be able to swing the price of a fader pack AND a master section together. Ergonomics are a huge issue for me. So, that’s no small concern.

They do fit nicely.


The thing is that the Nuage Master section is smaller than the Fader Section.
The small extention brings the Master Section to the width of the Fader pack, but no drawer is available.
Indeed, the one who came up with that idea …
That being said, I am no fundamentalist who thinks that a keyboard and mouse do not belong on a Controller.
My keyboard & mouse are always there, and I use what is most handy, fastest or a combination.


I was especially interested in your speaker placement. That’s been a big concern for me.

It was also one of mine concerns.
The top of the HP monitors are 120cm (47 inch) from the floor.
The hight of the monitor (without the stand) is 37 cm (14,5 inch), and with the stand minimum 44 cm (
17,3 inch).
Midrange speakers are pretty easy to place, so are bigger speakers which are far away.
Our Meyer HD1’s are really limit. But it works. And it works well.

I know I won’t be able to swing the price of a fader pack AND a master section together.

I think you should try to get them both.
I’m not saying that one can’t do without the other, but they complement very-very well.
The transport and monitoring section is what makes this a nearly “real” console.

Fredo

That’s the same KB as the one sitting on top of the console?

I absolutely agree with you about that. I thought for sure that Small Format Digital Console manufacturers would have QWERTY KBs built into their center section (like the ICON D Control), as soon as they started offering HUI layers to address the ergonomic issue. This has always been a major sore spot for me trying to place the KB in some complementary position with the desk, besides under it on a pull-out drawer.

That height would mean that I’d have to raise my surround monitor array up 8 inches, which might require some angled psuedo soffit like shelving to point them directly back to my head, like they’re place now sitting flat.

No argument. But the price point is seriously steep and if you don’t have it to spend, you can’t get it! It’s not like I can get them to throw in the master section for an extra $2k! We’re talking almost double the purchase price of the fader pack by itself and the cost of that little 8" blank panel to make the master section come out to 24" is flat out criminal! So, IF I can manage it, it will be the fader pack and one HP monitor and I hope that my QWERTY KB will fit into that tight slot! If that works out well, I’ll come back for the master section.

It’s the same type and brand, but it controls another computer.
The fourth screen (most right) has double use.
The DVI input is from the main Nuage computer (4 screen setup) and the HDMI input is the feed from a second computer, also running Nuendo, but mostly other applications.
Like our Dubbing software, email, Filemaker, Office, FTP transfers, Skype, and any other application we don’t want on our main computer.

… the cost of that little 8" blank panel to make the master section come out to 24" is flat out criminal!

Then check out the price for the large blank unit.
Same price (or very near) to what a I/O hardare unit costs …
While I think the price for Nuage is justified, this is a plain ripp-off.

So, IF I can manage it, it will be the fader pack and one HP monitor and I hope that my QWERTY KB will fit into that tight slot! If that works out well, I’ll come back for the master section.

You will not regret it.

Fredo